


Rivers of New York and New Jersey

by Aurae



Category: Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch
Genre: Epistolary, Future Fic, Gen, Genii Locorum (Rivers of London), Research, Worldbuilding, Worldbuilding Exchange 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:21:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23216941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurae/pseuds/Aurae
Summary: While on a study abroad exchange program in New York City, Abigail gets to chatting with thegenius lociof the Hudson River.
Comments: 13
Kudos: 86
Collections: Worldbuilding Exchange 2020





	Rivers of New York and New Jersey

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Beatrice_Otter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beatrice_Otter/gifts).



**_Composed on one fine, spring day:_ **

From: ak616@nyu.edu

To: pgrantedimightbewrong@googlemail.com

Subject: Long Time, No Type!

Hi Peter!

Sorry I haven’t written as often as I’d promised. Time flies, and I’ve been understandably busy (ha ha), but uni in New York has been great! I’m reading Latin _and_ film studies _and_ geography _and_ electrical engineering—all in the same term! This isn’t like England where you pick one subject when you make your application and stay to your lane for the whole three years. I’m lovin’ it.

I went to see Frozen 2: The Musical yesterday with a bunch of other overseas exchange students. It’s still in Broadway previews, and the tickets were cheap. The music was excellent (go ahead and sneer, Peter, but it _was_ ), and the stage effects were lots of fun. Elsa’s ice magic is remarkably accurate in substance, when you actually stop to think about it, you know? But of course the idea that you’re _born_ with power is utterly silly.

Oh, in other news, guess what?! I met the _genius loci_ of the Hudson River! He’s a white guy, and he looks and sounds so much like Robert DeNiro in The Godfather Part 2 (which they made us watch for film studies) I thought he was an actor or a professional impersonator or something. And since I met him in the Theater District, that seemed plausible. But nope—he was just there to see the Frozen 2 preview, same as us!

Anyway, he was really surprised I could tell he was a River. If this were home he probably would’ve told me to GFY, but since we’re in the States of course he was happy to be my BFF and chat. He even told me to call him “Uncle Hudson”…! I asked him if he was related to the London Rivers, but he said no. Apparently he’s “part Dutch, part Irish, part Jewish, and part Italian,” or so he says. He didn’t seem especially certain of his ancestry—Americans tend to be like that, I’ve found!—and he says he’s not related to any other New York Rivers either.

But here’s the really interesting part: There are other Rivers! Uncle Hudson is the _genius loci_ of the Hudson below the Tappan Zee Bridge only. Someone else is in charge of the upstate portions of the river. It seems kind of like Mama and Father Thames situation, except maybe worse, and it was the one thing Uncle Hudson didn’t seem eager to talk about. I’m going to see if I can find out more—and _yes,_ Peter, I proooomise I’ll stay safe.

In any case, I better get going and get to bed. It’s past midnight, and I’ve got an 8:45 A.M. class tomorrow! Please give Molly, Thomas, and the rest my loooove~

AK xx

  


**_Composed separately, two weeks later:_ **

From: ak616@nyu.edu

To: harold.postmartin@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Subject: Possible Mphil Dissertation Topic?

Dear Dr Postmartin

As you know, I had planned a journey this past weekend to Upstate New York. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, however, my plans changed at the last minute, and I am pleased to report some remarkable findings.

Okay, some background: As you know, I was puzzled as to why the Hudson River, like the River Thames, would have two _genii locorum_. Uncle Hudson’s “part Dutch” ancestry leads me to believes his origin relates to Dutch colonisation of what is now New York City. But why was this part of the river “available”? There is nothing in the recorded history of that period or even several hundred years prior comparable to the Great Stink of 1858.

Then I learnt the following: Today, the Hudson River terminates in the Atlantic Ocean via the Narrows, a tidal strait separating the boroughs of Staten Island and Brooklyn. During the last Ice Age, 6000 years ago and prior, however, Staten Island and Brooklyn were connected via a land bridge, and the Hudson River ran an entirely different, westerly course through New Jersey, where its eventually joined with the Raritan River at what is now the town of Bound Brook. Both rivers then emptied into Raritan Bay.

As it turns out, getting to Bound Brook from Lower Manhattan is a simple journey with one change via commuter rail. I confess I didn’t have plan, other than to hope I might run into some members of the local _demi-monde_ who would be willing to answer my questions. I guess I was also hoping that maybe I’d be able to meet the _genius loci_ of the Raritan…if there was one.

Long story short: OH WOW. Although I didn’t meet the Raritan River—she, and the Raritan is a “she” who doesn’t talk to anybody, apparently—I did meet the _genius loci_ of Middle Brook. She goes by Media (pronounced MEH-dee-ah), and she self-identifies as Latina. Media is the daughter of Costa Rican immigrants who settled in Bound Brook in the latter half of the twentieth century. She wasn’t clear on what year she became the _genius loci_ of Middle Brook, but it had to have been less than one-hundred years ago.

Anyway, according to Media, the Hudson above the Tappan Zee and the Raritan are sisters who predate European colonization of the Americas. They were worshipped as gods by the indigenous Native American tribes (Lenape? Ancestors of the Lenape? I will need to read up on this). The rerouting of the Hudson was a traumatic event for both sisters that resulted in the deaths of many of their tributary children, and Hudson lost her most of her dominion of the portions of the river which correspond roughly to the NYC metro area. After the arrival of the Europeans and the extirpation of most of the Native Americans, she lost it completely.

Also interesting: Bound Brook is locally famous in New Jersey for being one of the most flood-prone areas. Media said that this is because the Raritan is still stewing over old grievances dating back to early European settlement of the Americas, and also that she wishes to be reunited with her sister to the north.

Anyway, _if_ all this is accurate as reported by Media, it seems to me that there are preliminary scientific generalizations to be made about place-based magic: that it depends upon both geographic stability _and_ human cultural continuity, and disruption of the former is necessary but not necessarily sufficient to unseat an incumbent _genius loci_. Thus the _genii locorum_ of both the Raritan River and the River Lea originate in prehistory, but both the _genii locorum_ of the Hudson in New York City and the Thames in London are relatively recent arrivals.

So, what do you think? Would this make a good MPhil dissertation topic? If so, I would be delighted if you would consider being my dissertation supervisor. Additional fieldwork in other locations would of course be necessary in future, and I plan to gather more data throughout the rest of my semester abroad at NYU. Hopefully we can meet after I’ve returned to Oxford? I look forward to your positive response.

Yours sincerely

Abigail

**Author's Note:**

> Posted to the exchange on March 19, 2020.


End file.
